Eggs for the Family

It's 4:30 am and I hear old Foghorn putting on a show for the neighbors. With each cockadoodledo I hear my plott hound Buck try to talk back and tell him to shut up for at least another hour. That just makes my wife get up and tell Buck to shut the.....well, you can figure out the rest.

There is nothing like raising your own eggs. Laying hens not only provide a much needed food source for the family, but they also provide entertainment for the kids...and myself. Not only are they easy to care for, but they are also economical for the farm. The cost of feed is offset by the money that you are not paying for eggs in the store. You can even sell enough to cover the cost of bird and feed replacement.

There are many different coop designs on the web that you can look at to get an idea of how to build your own. You can even take an old building and turn it into a coop. Some things to consider when building your coop is that the hens prefer shade in the summer months. They like a temperature between 45 and 80 degrees. Provide them with plenty of water and feed and let nature take its course.

When it comes to nesting boxes you don't have to buy them. You can build your own out of scrap plywood. They should be at least a foot square and deep. Sit them about 18 inches off of the floor of your coop and fill them with wheat straw. One box is sufficient for up to four hens.

Hanging waterers are available at your local farm store or you can just cut the side out of used milk jugs and hang them about a foot off of the ground. These work best in winter months and keep you from ruining more expensive waterers from freezing and cracking.

All hens will molt during the late summer or early fall. Egg production will slow down, but don't worry. Once they get their new feathers they should start back to laying. Just continue to provide them with high protein feed and plenty of oyster shell for calcium. It will strengthen their bones and give you a harder egg shell during laying.

Chickens are a great investment in your farm or backyard. They will give you food and fun for the family.

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